I must say that I do feel somewhat vindicated in my original read on the Rev. Wright situation after watching Rev. Wright's recent lengthy speeches at the Press Club and the NAACP, and also Obama's response to them. Recall our discussions in the comments section of my original Wright post here. Rev. Wright could derail Obama's campaign. The controversy that won't go away has injected new life into Hillary's campaign just when Obama needed to strangle the life out of it, and it has left a lasting impression on many Americans who before were tentatively considering supporting a black man for the highest office in the land. As usual, I thought Obama did a good job discussing the issue, and it was clearly a difficult thing for him to do (SEE BELOW).
So, is this enough to put this to bed? If Wright himself continues to demand the spotlight and continues to openly show disdain for Obama's sincerity while at the same time reinforcing the point that Obama was a loyal member of this man's congregation for 20 years (the worst of both worlds for Obama, in a sense), what will be the overall impact on Obama's once positive, feel-good, all inclusive vibe that was so unstoppable just a month ago?
You just cannot give the Clintons this type of opening. They are ravenous wolves for this type of opportunity. Rush Limbaugh and right wing talk radio may come to soon regret their "Operation Chaos" campaign encouraging listeners to register as democrats and vote for Hillary in the primaries to keep the fight going. (This has evidently had a real impact on the race in the most recent primaries, starting in Texas going forward.) I have come to the conclusion that there are three strong political parties in the country right now: the republicans, the democrats and the Clintons. The Clintons have as much loyalty to the dems as they do the repubs. They do not care how much damage they do to the democratic party. This could be the perfect storm for Obama's once perfect campaign: Rev. Wright, McCain's free months running virtually unopposed so he can shore up support (and polls seem to indicate it is working for him), and Hillary's apparent determination to make a kamikaze run for the nomination (the democratic party being the plane she is crashing into the carrier in my rather tortured metaphor).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
Dez, you can make a hyperlink in a blog post that will lead folks to other websites, this website and/or comments to this website in any post.
But you knew that, right?
I just want to comment on one small part of this post. You said that "Rush Limbaugh and right wing talk radio may come to soon regret their 'Operation Chaos' campaign." This is a common misconception as to what Limbaugh is actually trying to accomplish. He couldn't care less who ends up as the Democratic nominee. All he is trying to do is prolong the fight. If Hillary was winning, he would have encouraged people to vote for Obama. The thought process behind "Operation Chaos" is to keep the Democrats battling amongst themselves for as long as possible, so that, as you put it, McCain will have "free months running virtually unopposed so he can shore up support." And, this is only one of the benefits. You also have to consider that the Democrats are running out of money due to this prolonged fight, and they have had to spend months tearing each other apart that the party could have spent building up its candidate.
I don't see Limbaugh regretting his plan, even if Hillary is the nominee, because McCain has enjoyed the best shot he could possibly have had to win the general election.
Hoodlumman, I did know how to hyperlink, but I honestly didn't think about doing it to something on my own blog. I have fixed that now in the post, thanks.
Walter, I don't have that misconception. I think in my post I do point out that the reason he is doing it is precisely why you say he 's doing it, to prolong the democratic battle. But I am saying that these Dittoheads who are following Limbaugh's commands may regret it because if for some reason Hillary does get the nomination, she will have been helped along the way by the people who hate her. Yes, Obama is still almost assured the nomination, but something could happen between now and then. You never know. As long as Hillary is in this race, she is a threat. Never underestimate a Clinton! And I know McCain benefits from a prolonged democrat battle, but he is far from a sure thing in a general against Hillary or Obama. What if, however slim the chance, Hillary goes all the way? How will Operation Chaos be viewed then? (Limbaugh won't regret it. A Hillary election would give him material for his show for the next 4-8 years.)
One other possible Clinton strategy: it has been pointed out in some circles that the Clinton strategy is now more long term. The Clintons may be staying in the race to do enough damage to Obama so he loses the race to McCain, and then Hillary can go for it again four years from now. That could be a good opportunity for her: damage Obama so he is not a viable candidate now or in four years, bank on McCain being too old in four years or too unpopular in four years, and then she gets the White House in 2012.
Rev. Wright just makes me mad. He's obviously not a very good friend and apparently doesn't really care that much about improving conditions for black people. He'd rather grab the spotlight for himself by making ridiculous headline grabbing statements that offend and anger many people.
I actually agree with much of what he says, but I don't appreciate the way he says it. He's not really trying to educate. He's trying to shock and anger people and get his 15 minutes of fame.
And, of course, he occasionally says absolutely ridiculous things such as his comments regarding the AIDS virus. That's like the people who say the Holocaust never happened or man never walked on the moon. Some people are just paranoid and think everything is a conspiracy.
I thought Obama did the right thing. He continually impresses me and I strongly hope he can survive this. I think his chances are still pretty good, but this has definitely hurt him.
Post a Comment